Singapore Airlines

Betting on the continued growth of international travel, Singapore Airlines ordered 60 new jets in a deal worth $17 billion, the airline announced. The airline has split its order, calling for 30 Boeing planes and 30 Airbus jets, with delivery of the aircraft beginning in 2016. Quiz: What can't you take onboard a jetliner? The order is the latest example of an industry investing big in the future. In 2011, American Airlines ordered 460 new planes and confirmed the order several months later after its parent company AMR Corp.

For late summer travel as well as fall travel to Tokyo, Singapore Airlines has an $870 round-trip fare from LAX that includes all taxes and fees. It is for travel Mondays-Thursdays from Sept. 1 until Nov. 20 and for return any day of the week through February. It is subject to availability. Info: Singapore Air , (800) 742-3333 Source: Airfarewatchdog

On Singapore Airlines, the onboard menu changes with each airport the carrier serves, so fliers can order local dishes or drinks. For example, passengers flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong or South Korea can order Napa Valley wines. “The whole program is to give passengers a taste of something familiar,” said James Boyd, a spokesman for the airline. What do passengers flying from Los Angeles get? A selection of doughnuts from Randy's Donuts in Inglewood. The doughnuts, which are delivered daily to the airline's catering facility, are made a bit smaller than typical Randy's Donuts to better fit on the airplane's serving dishes.

Emirates Airlines , named this week as the world's best airline in ratings published by SkyTrax, will begin A380 service from Dubai to Los Angeles on Dec. 2. “Demand has steadily grown since we commenced operation to L.A. in 2008," said Orhan Abbas, Emirates spokesman. “As Los Angeles is known for its luxury and the Hollywood lifestyle, bringing our A380 into the market was a natural fit.” The route, the 23rd A380 destination on Dubai-based Emirates global network, will depart Dubai at 8:20 a.m. (times quoted are for local time)

You can fly to the Thai resort of Phuket on Singapore Airlines , departing from LAX , for $1,099 round trip, including all taxes and fees. The trip must occur between Aug. 18 and Nov. 15. The maximum stay is one month, and the ticket must be purchased by June 25. The fare is subject to availability. Info: Singapore Airlines , (800) 742-3333 Source: Airfarewatchdog Follow us on Twitter @latimestravel , like us on Facebook @Los Angeles Times Travel.

Singapore Airlines has decided to fit the 30 Boeing 747-400 and 20 McDonnell Douglas MD-11 aircraft it is buying with American-made Pratt & Whitney engines worth about $2.2 billion, the company said today. The airline said it spent four months evaluating three engines, including one by General Electric and one by Rolls-Royce, before deciding on the Pratt & Whitney PW 4056.

In-flight gambling soon could be available on some of Singapore Airlines' international flights. Memphis-based Interactive Entertainment Limited has a contract to put video gambling terminals aboard 38 Singapore 747s. Installation will begin by the end of the year, officials said, although it has not been determined when gambling will be offered. In-flight gambling is illegal aboard U.S. airlines and for any international flights to or from the United States.

Boeing Co. won an order worth as much as $4 billion to supply Singapore Airlines Ltd. with 777-200 jets to replace its aging Airbus A310s. The contract is a blow to Airbus Industrie, which had tried unsuccessfully to design a successor to the A-310. Singapore placed a firm order for 10 of the Seattle maker's 777s, taking options for 10 more. Including earlier 777 orders from 1995 and 1999, the airline has placed a total of 50 firm orders and taken 31 options on the 777, Boeing's newest model.

U.S. air travelers rate American Airlines the top U.S. air carrier and Singapore Airlines the best foreign airline, a survey released Thursday showed. The survey, conducted by Research & Forecasts Inc. for Zagat Survey, a New York company that also rates American restaurants and hotels, surveyed only Americans who are frequent fliers. It indicated a generally high level of criticism of airline service. Of the 25,000 surveys sent out, 4,462 people responded.

Faced with the fact that its pilot was at least partly responsible for the jumbo jet crash last week that claimed 81 lives, Singapore Airlines announced Saturday that it will give each of the victims' families $400,000. The offer came on top of an immediate $25,000 payout the airline made to the families. In addition, the airline said it will bear all the medical expenses of those injured, who were initially offered $5,000 apiece.

June is typically a slow month for homebuilders, but a key confidence level reading jumped by eight points this month, the largest monthly jump in more than a decade, according to the National Assn. of Homebuilders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. Homebuilder confidence level is at 52 in June, the first time the metric has risen above 50 since 2006. A reading above 50 mean builders see conditions as good rather than poor. The housing recovery has finally taken hold, economists have noted.

Seven out of 10 workers have "checked out" at work or are "actively disengaged," according to a recent Gallup survey . In its ongoing survey of the American workplace, Gallup found that only 30% of workers are "were engaged, or involved in, enthusiastic about, and committed to their workplace. " Although that equals the high in engagement since Gallup began studying the issue in 2000, it is overshadowed by the number of workers who aren't committed to a performing at a high level -- which Gallup says costs companies money.

NEW YORK -- The main event for Wall Street this week may not yield any surprises -- or so investors seem to think. Stocks surged more than 1% early Monday ahead of a key Federal Reserve meeting, a sign investors do not expect the central bank to announce any immediate changes to its easy-money stimulus programs. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 179.18 points, or 1.19%, to 15,249.36 shortly after the opening bell. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 17.54 points, or 1.08%, to 1,644.27.

You can fly to the Thai resort of Phuket on Singapore Airlines , departing from LAX , for $1,099 round trip, including all taxes and fees. The trip must occur between Aug. 18 and Nov. 15. The maximum stay is one month, and the ticket must be purchased by June 25. The fare is subject to availability. Info: Singapore Airlines , (800) 742-3333 Source: Airfarewatchdog Follow us on Twitter @latimestravel , like us on Facebook @Los Angeles Times Travel.

On Singapore Airlines, the onboard menu changes with each airport the carrier serves, so fliers can order local dishes or drinks. For example, passengers flying from San Francisco to Hong Kong or South Korea can order Napa Valley wines. “The whole program is to give passengers a taste of something familiar,” said James Boyd, a spokesman for the airline. What do passengers flying from Los Angeles get? A selection of doughnuts from Randy's Donuts in Inglewood. The doughnuts, which are delivered daily to the airline's catering facility, are made a bit smaller than typical Randy's Donuts to better fit on the airplane's serving dishes.

Betting on the continued growth of international travel, Singapore Airlines ordered 60 new jets in a deal worth $17 billion, the airline announced. The airline has split its order, calling for 30 Boeing planes and 30 Airbus jets, with delivery of the aircraft beginning in 2016. Quiz: What can't you take onboard a jetliner? The order is the latest example of an industry investing big in the future. In 2011, American Airlines ordered 460 new planes and confirmed the order several months later after its parent company AMR Corp.

THE BEST WAY TO PULAU UBIN, SINGAPORE From LAX, nonstop service to Singapore is offered on Singapore Airlines, and connecting service (change of planes) is offered on All Nippon, United, Korean, Delta and Cathay Pacific. Restricted round-trip fares begin at $970, including all taxes and fees. To reach Pulau Ubin, bumboats leave the Changi Village Pier, reachable by the MRT (the local subway system) to Tanah Merah Station and bus No. 2 to Changi Bus Interchange. It's about 3 minutes on foot from there to the pier.

Delta Air Lines Inc. agreed to buy the 49 percent stake in Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. held by Singapore Airlines Ltd. for $360 million to boost its share of the lucrative trans-Atlantic travel market. Delta and Virgin Atlantic, the biggest long-haul rival to British Airways at London's Heathrow airport, will also begin a joint venture on 31 roundtrip daily flights between the U.K. and North America, the companies said today in a statement. The deal positions Atlanta-based Delta to grab a bigger slice of the world's biggest market for premium passengers.